Elon Musk: Being a Quadrillionaire is Realistic, but We Need Factories on the Moon and Mars
Elon Musk is once again stirring public interest, stating that the status of a quadrillionaire is a "quite real" goal. However, he is still short of nearly a trillion dollars, and in his opinion, accumulating such a sum on Earth is impossible.
Recently, social media calculated that the billionaire is missing about $998.9 trillion to reach the coveted quadrillion dollars. Musk did not argue with the math but instead supported the idea: the only way to achieve such a scale is to move production beyond Earth. "It's real, but it definitely requires factories on the Moon and Mars," he wrote in response to a post.
Mass and Energy Instead of Money
Musk's response drew attention not only for its ambition but also for its depth. He questioned what currency would even mean in the future. In his estimation, the dollar as we know it will cease to exist. "By that time, I think dollars will no longer be the currency. Only mass and energy," the entrepreneur emphasized. This statement is not just a futuristic fantasy but a logical extension of his business strategy.
Musk is saying all this against the backdrop of SpaceX's rapid growth. The company held a record IPO with a valuation of $2 trillion on the Nasdaq and briefly entered the top six most valuable companies in the U.S. Musk previously predicted that by 2030, SpaceX's revenue could reach $1 trillion, although in 2025 the company expects to earn $18.7 billion.
Musk's Volcanic Lair
The same logic is evident in all of Musk's projects. Under his contract with SpaceX, he will receive 200 million shares with enhanced voting rights if a permanent colony of at least one million people is established on Mars. SpaceX has already formed the first crew for a flight around Mars, which includes a crypto billionaire.
Musk did not miss the opportunity to joke that he would finally get that "volcanic lair" he has often smilingly mentioned publicly. Presenting his boldest ideas through references to science fiction is his signature style.
Key facts about SpaceX's stock market listing clearly show how much Musk has changed perceptions of the value of private companies. The talk of a quadrillion is a continuation of this idea. The limit of personal and corporate wealth is set not by the market, but by how far humanity advances in exploring other planets.
Expert opinion: Musk's idea of transitioning from fiat money to "mass and energy" as basic units of value is not just shock value. It is a direct hint that in the context of space expansion, traditional financial systems will become irrelevant. Cryptocurrencies, with their decentralized nature and programmability, could become the ideal bridge to such a future. But for now, SpaceX still has a long way to go before reaching a quadrillion — and that path lies not through stock market speculation, but through real factories on the Moon and Mars.